Out of Mind
by yulchii
Summary: Shinso's performance in the Sports Festival was noticed. Just not for the right reasons. And not by the right people.


**Author's Note:** I'm not sorry for updating this and not my other stories. It was pretty funny to write, may leave it as a Oneshot though because I have no idea what to do with this one (as with all my other stories).

* * *

A staff meeting was called on the first Wednesday of the next semester. It wouldn't have raised any questions except the Principal called it _during_ the lessons of the day, demanding the presence of all teachers on campus. Which meant it was urgent.

Shouta leaned forward, putting his head on his crossed arms on the table. His co-workers were quietly discussing the summons issued just a few minutes ago. Nobody knew the reason for the hurry but he was already getting more annoyed as seconds ticked by. Why call a meeting if you're not going to be there already? The principal better have a good reason.

He tried to bury the concern that spread over his chest, gnawing on his insides. He saw his students just a while ago, they weren't in any danger. Bakugo was back and so were the rest of these reckless, idiot kids.

That was the moment the doors opened and in walked the principal, his usually cheerful disposition nowhere to be seen.

When he was followed by two police officers, Shouta sat ramrod straight, he knew it was serious. Then the final person, Kanjo Kioko, a homeroom teacher of class 1C and history teacher, entered and closed the door behind herself with a final sounding click. She didn't try to join them at the table, she stood by the door, keeping her arms loosely around her stomach and Shouta didn't know what happened but her posture spoke to him just fine. Hugging herself, looking away from everyone and trying to maintain a calm look while tears gathered in her eyes.

Shit. He hoped it wasn't what he feared.

Nezu hopped into his seat and looked at all the teachers silently, nobody rushed him but the worry was making Hizashi on Shouta's right practically vibrate in his chair.

"A horrible thing has happened," the Principal finally said and the words had an effect of immediately making Shouta wish for his sleeping bag where he could just hide from the world and pretend it wasn't as bad as it so obviously was. "A student has been taken during the Summer Camp."

There was quiet and confusion. Everyone just looked around, not knowing if this was it. They all knew about the shitstorm that was the Camp and Shouta felt the need to bury himself even more in his capture weapon. He was aware he couldn't have done any better but it still stung, that he wasn't able to defend all of his students.

The mouse continued, "As you all know, during the Summer Camp, a student from 1A, Bakugo Katsuki-kun was taken by a group calling themselves The League of Villains. However, as we've just been notified, he was not the only casualty," Nezu bowed his head and continued, "During the time of the attack, it seems a student from beyond the Hero Course was taken right off the streets."

Shouta could feel it as his eyes became even more dry and he absently wondered if he looked as deranged as he felt. They took another kid. There were two police officers with Nezu. There was the General Students' teacher who was already crying again, hand coming up to her mouth.

What Nezu said next made Shouta clench his fists and tug on his scarf fiercely, trying to shake the numbness that seemed to be settling over him at the news.

"The student's name is Shinso Hitoshi."

A sharp intake of breath, a fist slamming into the table and Shouta wasn't even aware he stood up and he felt like someone took control of his body, as his mouth opened, "Why are we being informed of this just now?" He spat out. He felt like there was venom on his tongue, he needed to fling a curse right now or he will explode because-

"The Training Camp was two _weeks_ ago!" He snarled and the teacher of 1C General Education class slid down the door with a sob. Midnight jumped to her feet and went to console her but Shouta didn't look away from the Principal except to glare at the two police officers who stepped forward.

"Shinso-kun's foster family has not reported him missing until today, when Kanjo-sensei came forward with her concerns about Shinso-kun not attending any classes since the summer break ended," one of them offered and that was a whole other can of worms that Shouta felt the need to tear apart.

The dark haired officers nodded at him, apparently in understanding, "The two adults are currently detained and interrogated. Their other children have been relocated to another house and are under professional watch."

The other one stepped in, "We've brought the tape of the boy's kidnapping, please tell us if you see something significant. Even a small detail may be critical in this case. Even if Shinso-kun has been missing for over two weeks, there is still a possibility of him being alive so time is very much an issue here. Please, let us begin." The delivery of the speech was so monotone, Shouta almost fucking hit the guy but Hizashi clamped a hand of steel on his wrist and lightly tugged him back into his chair.

The footage played for all to see on the big screen. A near empty street in the suburbs, the poorer districts but not the worst. A few seconds passed until finally a lanky figure with a mess of purple hair rounds a corner and walks down the sidewalk. It seems the kid knows this street well because he doesn't look up from his phone.

Then, a portal opens up in front of him and several gasps are heard around the room as they all recognize it. The kid jerkily comes to a halt and flinches back hard but not before a hand reaches out of the familiar black mist and snatches one of the boys wrists and _tugs_. The kid is surprised, unbalanced and unprepared. He opens his mouth and Shouta sees the way his shoulder tighten in preparation to fight back but a second hand comes out and grabs at a strap of the boy's bag. The bag immediately falls down, off his shoulder, seemingly the strap has ripped but Shouta _suspected_ something as soon as he saw the first hand grab at the kid and he _knew_ it when the bag fell to the ground.

Shigaraki Tomura.

The sudden lack of weight on the bony shoulder is enough of a surprise that in the next second the boy is yanked clear off his feet and falls forward and right into the misty darkness.

There is silence in the staff room, Shouta looks around and sees the pinched looks on every face. He hears the sniffles from the direction of the door and Nemuri's murmurs. It seems that all the measures the school took were for nothing if the villains could just grab one of their students right off the streets.

* * *

Shouta offered everything he knew about the assailant and the cops nodded, recorded what he had to say and wrote some points down, the other Pros and teachers didn't really have much to offer as both of the encounters with the League featured Shouta's class. Kan piped up with a few comments here and there but mostly it was Shouta talking. The police most likely knew all of that already but they didn't stop him.

"And of course we will need to talk with Bakugo Katsuki-kun, who may have important information regarding the case," said the taller cop. Shouta tensed and immediately opened his mouth to protest but was beat to the punch by All Might, who coughed a few times, sounding like he was hacking up a lung.

"Please, if it wouldn't be too much trouble, let the Pros from school handle the questions for the boy," Shouta blinked, startled. It was good thinking on Toshinori's side, Bakugo was abrasive and a pain to deal with on a good day. Making him remember what he considers a great humiliation and being hounded by two cops about that day would be a fine way to make the kid explode and fly into a rage. And it would be pretty bad for the school's credibility (next significant blow right into the heart of Heroes) if a student blew up the cops.

Shouta added his opinion on this, dryly asking to be the one who questions his student and gaining permission near immediately. Everyone on staff knew that Bakugo was _somewhat_ more collected when it came to his homeroom teacher. Some would say the kid was even calm in his presence to which Shouta called bullshit because Bakugo did not just do _calm_.

He also knew that they would need to delicately probe at Bakugo's rescue squad from that incident. Midoriya, Iida, Kirishima, Todoroki and Yaoyorozu would need to be questioned as well and Shouta could feel the responsibility of it weighing him down already.

After, they thanked all of the staff and left, graciously allowing them to keep the footage of the incident, it likely has already been copied multiple times already and they could afford to spare one for the Hero School. With an order to notify them if anything happened concerning the case on UA's end, the officers cleared off.

* * *

Later, when the others leave and it's just him and Hizashi in the room, he looks at his best friend, eyes even more dead than normal, posture slipping into a tired slouch.

"We failed a student," he murmurs. Hizashi runs a hand through his hair, an action he has done throughout the meeting so many times that the usually pointy hairdo was looking somewhat floppy and messed up.

"They nabbed him right off the damn street, we couldn't have predicted that," the blond reasoned, his eyes absent and expression far away, his flamboyant glasses tucked away in the front pocket of his jacket.

"Nobody even noticed he was missing. Two whole weeks. He could as well be dea-" Hizashi put a hand on his shoulder and squeezed tightly.

"Don't say it," he begged, "Just don't. He might be okay, he might have escaped and is currently hiding."

Shouta didn't bother rolling his eyes at the theories, lies were comforting but they needed to look at this from a realistic point of view. "If they brought him where they brought Bakugo… You know what happened in Kamino Ward. He could have been caught in the fight."

The words were hard to say but it was the truth. Shinso Hitoshi could very well be dead, whether it be from being buried in rubble, killed by a stray villain or maybe even tortured to death, was anyone's guess. The kid was smart, he could give him that, the fact Shinso came as far as he did in the Sport's Festival was testament to that but the boy's strength was his intelligence, _not_ his body.

There was a tense silence between them for a few moments and then Shouta groaned.

"Goddamnit I'm gonna need to talk with Bakugo about this. Shit," he curled in on himself, wishing he could just get in his sleeping bag and come back out in a year. Or five.

Hizashi patted his back, sympathetic. The air was a little more bearable after that.


End file.
